According to the New Hampshire Business Review, previous state debate on privatization didn't exactly win anyone's affection, and the state currently has no private prisons. But some lawmakers managed to sneak in a study committee to consider a full-scale privatization:

The proposal was to "privatize the Department of Corrections", which was to issue a report on the plan by Dec. 1, 2011. Also included was the requirement that the Department of Administrative Services issue a request for proposal for "provision of correctional services or any other services provided by the Department of Corrections." However, it added that the commissioner "may enter into one or more contracts" for the "transfer and reception of not more than 600 inmates."

It is unclear from the wording whether Administrative Services or Corrections can go beyond that and contract out the entire prison system without legislative approval.

However, many of those involved in the process think that the state can, even though some say that such a maneuver won't fly politically.

Of course, as prison advocates are quick to point out, privatization is a step backwards for rehabilitating folks. To maximize efficiency, prisoners get shipped around the country, meaning families cannot visit and often community support structures are lacking. New Hampshire's plan allows such transfers, and since the closes private prisons are in Ohio, families better start saving now if they want to trek out to see incarcerated loved ones.

Even the argument that things would be cheaper seems met with some questions. As the spokesperson for Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform told the Business Review:

The research says private prisons can be marginally cheaper to operate when they serve their preferred kind of inmate, the population that is docile and healthy. It's the same way profit-making HMOs cherry pick the youngest and healthiest subscribers. ... But study after study shows that government-run programs generally do better with the challenging prisoners, and the quality of rehabilitation is consistently better for all inmate classifications." Dornin added that "private prisons tend to skimp on pay, training and staffing ratios. The result is often high turnover and personnel shortage. That's a dangerous combination behind razor wire.

New Hampshire could still decide against the plan. We'll have to likely wait until the end of the summer to see if the state becomes the first place in the country to hand over its entire male prison population to a for-profit corporation. It would be quite a distinction.